Name: Julie Hill
Nationality: American
Occupation: Composer, producer, vocalist, sound artist
Current release: Julie Hill's glow serene is out via Umé.
Recommendations: For‭ books - I highly recommend if on a winter’s night a traveller by Italo‬ Calvino‭. It’s something between a work of fiction and poetry that intricately‬ ‭weaves around the reader's mind. Makes me feel like I'm on a small country‬ road;‭ sometimes you’re not sure where the book is going or where you are or‬ if‭ any of it makes sense, and then everything comes together in the most‬ ‭beautiful way.‬
I‭ also really love the music and the visual art of Vinyl Williams - a musician /‬ visual‭ artist from Los Angeles. It’s very ethereal and full of beautiful‬ ‭messages for the listener.‬

If you enjoyed this Julie Hill interview and would like to know more about her music, visit her on Instagram, and bandcamp.



When‭ I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What‬ happens‭ in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with‬ ‭your eyes open or closed?‬

Usually‭ I end up closing my eyes to focus on the aspects of the music itself‬ so‭ I can listen deeply to the composition. Things I pay attention to are:‬ instrumentation,‭ timbres, mixing choices, melodic contour, the progression of‬ ‭harmonies, and any musical motifs / development of a theme.

Music is a‬ language‭ and the deeper you listen, the more you can understand its‬ ‭message.‬

‭Entering/creating new worlds through music has always exerted a‬ ‭strong pull on me. What do you think‬‭you‬‭are drawn to most when‬ ‭it comes to listening to and creating music?‬

‭I am certainly drawn to music’s ability to take the listener somewhere new‬ ‭mentally and emotionally - without having to travel physically. Since I was a‬ ‭kid, I used music to uplift myself and put myself in different states of mind.‬

When‭ I create music, I honestly get lost in having fun - making the music with‬ the‭ lovely people I get to make music with! My friends and I are all striving to‬ ‭express ourselves in new, innovative ways musically and there is always an‬ exciting‭ atmosphere of exploration. I love feeling like I am going to discover‬ ‭something new.

I constantly surprise myself. Hopefully, it continues on that‬ ‭way for the rest of my life.‬

‬According‭ to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most‬ incisive‭ musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did‬ ‭music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?‬

‭Haha oh no! Really? To be honest, I mostly spent those teenage years going‬ ‭to local emo and punk shows … I used to love going into mosh pits and‬ ‭jumping around.‬

Besides‭ local bands, I always listened to what was playing on the radio‬ (mostly‭ R&B and hip hop, and “oldies” from the 60s and 70s). Friends turned‬ me‭ onto Joni Mitchell, Nico, Emmitt Rhodes, Lou Reed, and Nick Drake.

A‬ ‭teacher had given me a CD of spirituals that I used to listen to a lot and‬ another‭ teacher gave me some film score soundtracks (which got me into‬ ‭French classical music like Ravel as well as rock music like the Clash, the‬ Ramones,‭ Elliott Smith, the Shins). Somehow, I also got a CD of Leonard‬ ‭Bernstein works I used to love listening to.‬

Tell‭ me about one or two of your early pieces that you're still proud‬ of‭ (or satisfied with) – and why you're content with them.‬

Difficult‭ to say. I don’t have a lot of my old songs anymore. An ex-boyfriend‬ told‭ me he still has my very first CD from 2008 though.

I still really like a string‬ quartet‭ I wrote in 2011. It is a solid composition and it flowed quite naturally‬ from‭ my brain to the paper as I played at the piano. Working it out on sheet‬ ‭music and with players was a good experience and the score is still good. I’d‬ ‭love to have it performed again.‬

What is your current your studio or workspace like? What‬ ‭instruments, tools, equipment, and space do you need to make‬ music?‬‭

You‭ do not need anything to make music. A lot of the time, I just sing. I love to‬ sing‭ in my house in those rare moments when no one else is home.‬

My‭ home setup is just an SM58, my synth and a small MIDI controller. I have‬ been‭ a music teacher for most of my life, so I can usually play piano or‬ ‭electric keyboard wherever I teach.‬

Sometimes‭ I make things entirely on the computer, sometimes I do it the old‬ way‭ (sit at the piano and write what’s in my brain on a sheet of paper). Then I‬ go‭ into some studio with a band and we create a new version of my ideas.‬ ‭What people hear as the final track is a team effort - my demos are always‬ ‭pretty different than what ends up being released.‬

‭From the earliest sketches to the finished piece, tell me about the‬ ‭creative process for your current release, please.‬

‭My friend got me into modular during the pandemic because we were bored‬ ‭and I was interested. I got my first module (Beads) and really didn’t know how‬ ‭to use it. Just stared at it and made some alien sounds. That year, I got more‬ ‭modules and created a very humble setup. This was a new way of making‬ music‭ for me and it was both delighting and frustrating (because I really never‬ ‭knew exactly what would come out of the machines).‬

‭I would get up early before work and layer sound from the modular. After‬ ‭work, I would add sounds from my juno and my singing. Then I would send‬ tracks‭ to various friends here (Jack, Zach, Sean) and there and ask them to‬ ‭improvise whatever they wanted on top.‬

At‭ some point, it all needed to be organised. I met Zubin Hensler who helped‬ me‭ re-record the vocals on a good mic and get all my ideas in order. I‬ ‭described what I envisioned for every mix in such detail ... I felt bad because‬ ‭it must have been a bit frustrating ... I knew what I wanted but didn’t have the‬ plug‭-ins or patience to do it myself.

What Zubin created with his mix and his‬ french‭ horn sounds was so far beyond the level of my original concept. I feel‬ so‭ lucky that we got to work together on this record.‬

What‭ role and importance do rituals have for you, both as an artist‬ and‭ a listener?‬

‭This is an interesting question. The word ritual inherently has a religious‬ ‭connotation, and although I’m not religious music has always served a‬ meaningful‭ purpose in my life the way I suppose religion can have for some‬ ‭people.‬

There‭ are certainly rituals around my compositional process; sitting at the‬ piano‭ is usually a big part of that. This album is so unique because I had no‬ ‭access to a piano until the end. I created it entirely with electronics and by‬ recording‭ friends remotely - which is so different from my usual method of‬ ‭writing songs at a piano and live recording with a band.‬

This‭ album glow serene came out of a morning routine of waking up, doing‬ yoga,‭ and recording some music before heading to my day job as a music‬ ‭teacher. Perhaps there is some ritual in that.‬


Julie Hill Interview Image (c) the artist

Are‭ you acting out parts of your personality in your music which‬ you‭ couldn't or wouldn't in your daily life? If so, which are these?‬

‭Certainly - I have to admit that part of my music is a form of escapism from‬ ‭my real life.

Often I write love songs about no one specific; my imagination‬ cares‭ out scenarios or people I’d like to be in or meet and I write about that. It always‭ starts from the seed of reality and my lived experience but what it‬ ‭turns into is something entirely different.‬

For‭ example, this very pretty album came out of a time when everything in my‬ life‭ was chaos and sadness and I often cried. Making this music was a form‬ of‭ therapy for me.‬

Late‭ producer SOPHIE said: “You have the possibility [...] to‬ generate‭ any texture, and any sound. So why would any musician‬ ‭want to limit themselves?” What's your take on that?‬

Yes‭ SOPHIE! Totally agree! I love to explore as many sounds as I can. Up‬ until‭ this album, I was making more psychedelic indie rock/ pop and before‬ ‭that I made some electronic dance music, some hip hop, wrote classical‬
music ‭…

I think it's fun to allow one’s creativity to flow through many different‬ mediums‭ because it’s always going to be your voice and your message.‬

Do‭ you feel that your music or your work as an artist needs to‬ have‭ a societal purpose or a responsibility to anyone but yourself?‬

‭Not always - I make a lot of music for myself that no one else hears.

On the‬ ‭whole, however, I believe my music needs to have a purpose. My current‬ music‭ does not have a political purpose or a statement of social change;‬ ‭someday I hope to write music like that.‬

Right‭ now, I just hope my music connects with listeners and moves them‬ toward‭ feeling better than they did before (or thinking more deeply about‬ ‭something). That’s what listening to music does for me.‬

‭Once a piece is done and released, do you find it important that‬ ‭listeners understand it in a specific way? How do you deal with‬ ‭“misunderstandings?”‬

Sometimes‭ it is important that the music is understood as I originally meant it,‬ but‭ many times I find alternate interpretations interesting. They make me‬ reconsider‭ the state I was in when I wrote the music and wonder whether‬ ‭there is truth in the alternate interpretation (usually there is).‬

‭Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises‬ ‭to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most‬ ‭moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made‬ ‭sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?‬

‭I really love walking in public parks in the summer - listening to the sounds of‬ ‭cicadas and birds, the wind, different communities enjoying parties playing all‬
sorts‭ of music.

The flow of these sounds is very musical to me - so dynamic‬ and‭ expressive, so timbrally interesting and pitched if you listen closely.‬ ‭Sometimes I catch a harmony or polyrhythm floating in the air.‬

‭We can surround ourselves with sound every second of the day.‬ ‭The great pianist Glenn Gould even considered this the ultimate‬ delight‭. How do you see that yourself and what importance does‬ ‭silence hold?‬

When‭ I was younger, you couldn’t find me without a boombox nearby or‬ headphones‭ on. These days, however, silence is more important to me.‬

‭Silence breathes - it allows space for my mind to create new ideas, space for‬ ‭me to feel more grounded in my own thoughts and develop a deeper sense of‬ ‭my personal musical language.‬

‭Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is‬ ‭inherently different from something like making a great cup of‬ coffee?‭ What do you express through music that you couldn't or‬ wouldn't‭ in more 'mundane' tasks?‬

This‭ question is funny to me because I have a horrible habit of burning food‬ because‭ I am distracted composing and lose track of time.

I think mundane‬ ‭tasks are much more akin to great engineering; they require a lot of technical‬ ‭skill with a bit of creativity. For me, composing new music often comes from a‬ deeper‭ need for emotional expression or some deeper self-inquiry.

I feel that‬ ‭there is more connection between writing music and cooking; in fact, a lot of‬ musicians‭ I know talk about composing by saying they’re “cooking” up‬ ‭something new.‬